Hero Of Time
by Bookwrm389
Summary: Upon awakening from his seven-year slumber, Link learns of Hyrule's devastation at the hands of the tyrant king, Ganondorf. With the aid of the Master Sword and a mysterious Sheikah, he must learn to shoulder the burdens of a hero as he searches for a way to reclaim the sacred Triforce and restore Princess Zelda to her throne. ON HIATUS.


_A.N. THIS IS A SEQUEL! Please read the Author's Note at the end of the chapter!_

Prologue

On that dark day in Hyrule, the royal family was betrayed by Ganondorf, the king of the Gerudo, and his desert warriors took the castle and the town that surrounds it for their own. It was his intent to invade the Sacred Realm and obtain the holy relic that the sovereigns of Hyrule have protected for generations—that which contains the power of the goddesses and would give him absolute dominion over the world.

On that day, Ganondorf entered the Temple of Time to obtain the legendary Triforce...and he emerged as something more than a man. Many names has he earned himself in the years since then. The Demon King, the Dark Lord, the King of Evil. But to the people of Hyrule, he remains the thief who slaughtered their beloved king and his guards and sent their dear princess into exile. And since then, his hands continue to be steeped in blood. To those who swiftly bent their knee, Ganondorf rewarded them handsomely, and to those who would not, he dealt harsh and unjust punishment.

The two proud nations who had pledged themselves to the royal family, the Gorons and Zoras, suffered dearly for their staunch loyalty. Long periods of summer drought along with frigid and equally arid winters all but evaporated Hyrule's rivers and lakes, confining the Zoras to a select few areas where Ganondorf might deal with them at his leisure. And although the Gorons put up a valiant fight at first, even they could not withstand the constant seismic upheavals that disturbed their volcanic home, and their nation was decimated. Resistance was futile against a man who could turn the very earth and sky against them.

For a time, the humans of Hyrule hoped that Ganondorf's lust for destruction would be limited solely to the nonhuman races and they would be overlooked. But they were not so lucky. The same disruption in the seasons utterly decimated the harvests, which brought hardship to the farmers and ranchers in the heart of the kingdom, and the eruptions of Death Mountain caused landslides and storms of ash and fire that wiped out many of the roads and villages in the eastern mountains. Unable to meet Ganondorf's substantial taxes, the people could only watch in devastation as their young children were conscripted into the ever-expanding army and the hated kingsmen set torch to their homes and fields without a care. Trade with outside kingdoms halted when word of Hyrule's troubles began to spread, and those who attempted to flee over the borders found the roads treacherous and the wilderness filled with frightening beasts and specters the likes of which had not been seen in centuries.

Unable to escape, unable to fight back, the people were helpless to do anything but go about their lives as best they could. Even a single voice raised in dissent could doom an entire family and town. Spies of the king were everywhere, sowing distrust and quelling further rebellion with the words, _Nothing can be done. Accept your lot and be grateful._

A dark time had come to Hyrule. And yet even in the darkest of hours, the light of hope still burned in the hearts of a few.

Deep in the southern forests, a Kokiri girl armed herself with a sturdy staff and stole away into the night to confront the specters that had been plaguing her village. Saria swallowed her fear as the snickering Poes beckoned her on with their bobbing lanterns, and very quietly, she whistled a joyful tune that made her think of hidden forest meadows and a lingering song played on the mournful voice of an ocarina...

Inside the stables in Lon Lon Ranch, Malon cried freely as her fumbling fingers bandaged the fresh whip lashes on one of her beloved horses. Outside, the guards hired by Ingo drank and gambled and talked in loud, coarse voices about how improbable it was that a lovely maiden like her had escaped Lord Ganondorf's notice. Malon hugged the mistreated mare tight, muffling her sobs in the soft coat, and wished that Epona had been so lucky...

Locked in a cell beneath Death Mountain, Darunia sat in solitude as he listened to the death cries of yet another of his people. With quiet resolve, he awaited his fate and did his best to turn his mind to happier times. And none could be happier than the day his son was born. He shut his eyes and remembered the lesson he had learned that day, the oath made in the bowels of the earth and the tremendous strength to be found in a child whose heart was too big for his little frame...

In the caverns where the Zoras made their home, Ruto stood trapped and terrified in the hidden grotto behind the frozen waterfall, watching as the ice that had entombed her people crept ever closer. She bit her lip hard enough to bleed and considered wasting her last breath on curses aimed at the man who had done this, but changed her mind and instead began to sing under her breath. A lovers' ballad that had always been her favorite and which her friend, Mikau, had always hated for the number of times she had forced him to sing it to her as a child. But now she let her voice carry through the ice and prayed he would hear it and know she was still alive...

All over Hyrule, voices whispered in the dark and cast out feeble threads of hope to each other. The web they spun was frail and many threads were lost over time, but always there was another to carry the secret hope that if they just held on a little longer, their prayers would be answered.

_Don't give up yet. One day, the Hero of Time will save us._

At long last, that answer came.

Seven years after the fall of Hyrule Castle, an awakening call arose from the Sacred Realm and swept outward from the Temple of Time to every corner of the land. C hildren who slept restlessly in their beds suddenly became quiescent, and adults returning from their work with heads bowed suddenly raised them and beheld the beauty of the night sky. Saria looked over her shoulder like she had heard a familiar voice. Malon dried her tears and fearlessly walked from the stables to seek her bed, staunchly ignoring the hired guards. Darunia peered up at the rocky ceiling in confusion as, for just a moment, the earth ceased to tremble. A single tear trailed down Ruto's cheek as the ice reached her and she slipped into a coma brought on by the cold.

On a high hilltop overlooking Kakariko village, a lone Sheikah started and stood up as the high grass rippled and swayed in the changing wind. Deep red eyes turned to the west and north, and a single hushed word disturbed the chill evening air.

"Link..."

* * *

_A.N. First and foremost...I AM SO SORRY! I swore to myself that I would never, EVER put a story on hiatus, but unfortunately I need to break that promise now. Both Ocarina of Time and Hero of Time are coming down and won't be going back up until I finish them to 100% completion. My reasons for doing this are manifold, but basically I've been working on this novelization for nearly a year, and it has been one hell of a year for me and my family (job losses, surgery, moving, etc.) This story was meant to be a distraction from all that, but it's become more of a chore lately, and this is a way to take pressure off myself and finish it in my own time and way without worrying about when I'm going to get the next chapter out. Also, I want to go back and rewrite the child saga. This story has evolved so much from its inception that it won't feel complete unless I do that and fix all the mistakes I made the first time through._

_All I can say is, I'm VERY sorry to all of those who have put this story on Favorites and Alerts. You are all amazing, and I'm so grateful to those reviewers who took the time to encourage me and tell me what they liked and didn't like because I'll be using that as my guidelines as I slowly finish this story. And I promise that it WILL be finished! I started writing this as a challenge to myself, and I intend to see it through no matter what._


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